Men conceive themselves as morally superior to those with whom they differ in opinion. A Socialist who thinks that the opinions of Mr. Gladstone on Socialism are unsound and his own sound, is within his rights; but a Socialist who thinks that his opinions are virtuous and Mr. Gladstone's vicious, violates the first rule of morals and manners in a Democratic country; namely, that you must not treat your political opponent as a moral delinquent.

George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950), Anglo-Irish playwright, critic. First published in English in Forecasts of the Coming Century, ed. by Edward Carpenter (1897). "The Illusions of Socialism," Shavian Tract No. 4, The Illusions of Socialism and Socialism: Principles and Outlook (Nov. 1956).